Standardized multiple choice answer sheets and systems which automatically grade those answer sheets are in widespread use in American education. These tests represent a quick, easy and inexpensive way to test large numbers of people for basic skills and specific skills taught in the classroom. Standardized tests such as the Scholastic Aptitude Test are widely used by universities to screen applicants. Similar standardized tests are also used to measure progress and assign grades in grammar school, high school, college and post-graduate courses.
While the standardized test has great advantages in cost, speed, and objectivity, it also presents test-takers with a number of means which make it easy to cheat. While essay tests and standardized multiple choice tests both allow some cheating, the format and method of the standardized multiple choice answer sheet provide several advantages for would-be cheaters.
The method of taking a standardized multiple choice test is simple. The examiner provides a standardized multiple choice test consisting of a list of sequentially numbered questions. Each question has a number of possible answers, usually labelled as answers "A," "B," "C," etc. or "true" and "false." The examiner also provides a standardized multiple choice answer sheet which is pre-marked with a matrix of answer spaces. Typically, each row of answer spaces in the matrix is assigned a number, marked on the left margin of the answer sheet, which corresponds to the number of the test question which is to be answered in that row. Each answer space in the row of answer spaces is typically assigned a letter, marked at the top of the answer sheet, which corresponds to the answer choices available on the standardized test. To answer each question, the test-taker places a mark in the answer space which corresponds to the chosen answer for the question in the row of answer spaces which correspond to the question being answered. The test-taker's only response to each question is a small mark. This small mark represents a minimal amount of information needed to relay a correct answer to the grader. It also represents a minimal amount of information necessary to be misappropriated by a would-be cheater. The small amount of information necessary for cheating makes cheating quite easy, and this form of cheating is widespread.
Other features of the standardized multiple choice answer sheet facilitate cheating. The answer sheets typically are made of white or light colored paper and require marks with a dark pen or pencil to make a mark of sufficiently high contrast to allow automatic grading. This high contrast between the answer mark and the background of the answer sheet also facilitates cheating by making each answer mark easier to see from a distance. The answer sheets typically contain a number of markings designed to facilitate testing and automatic grading. These marks include the control mark columns, repeated answer choice letter assignments and identification areas. Logos, trademarks, form numbers, copyright notices and patent numbers are also placed on the answer sheet by the manufacturer. These marks on the answer sheet also provide useful landmarks for the would-be cheater, making it easier to determine which answer the cheater has viewed from afar.
To maintain the integrity of the testing process, examiners employ several methods and devices to combat cheating on the standardized multiple choice tests. Proctors are often used to visually detect attempts by would-be cheaters to view the answer sheets of other test takers. Examinees are often seated far apart, in "every other seat," to make viewing of other answer sheets difficult. The Low Visibility Answer Sheet of U.S. Pat. No. 3,995,381, in which the answer spaces are pre-darkened in order to lower the contrast between the answer mark and the answer space, is used to make cheating more difficult by making it more difficult to see a difference between the marked and unmarked answer spaces. Despite the use of the Low Visibility Answer Sheet, examiners must continue to combat cheating with proctors and dispersed seating. Despite the use of all three means of combatting cheating, examiners continue to perceive a widespread cheating problem in standardized testing.